Chapter 664: Extra: Childhood 21

Extra: Childhood 21

The buzzcut dad was stunned; this turn of events wasn't what he had expected.

The Director of Academic Affairs cleared his throat, "Mr. Mu, this matter currently has no conclusion; the school will investigate it as soon as possible and will surely clear your name."

Mu Nian merely glanced at those few parents, "No need; I will entrust the Mu Clan Conglomerate's legal department to acquire your company."

The buzzcut family: "What a great deal?! This would directly turn the shares in our hands into real cash—enough for us to wander the world carefree…"

But Mu Nian's next sentence completely shattered his fantasy: "First go bankrupt, then acquire."

……

The subsequent resolution was, of course, satisfying.

Jiang Liangjin did nothing, and to this day he still doesn't know why Mu Xi and Song Lujing suddenly appeared to help him, and were kindly treated by those two brothers for several days.

As for this matter, Mu Youyu naturally had no idea from beginning to end.

During her second year of junior high, her days at school were spent in a battle of wits and courage with An Qingqing.

At the start of third year, sunshine filled the campus.

The opening ceremony was held in the auditorium, with the principal and a row of leaders seated on stage, while the floor below was packed with people.

Mu Youyu and Jiang Liangjin sat in the first row, Lin Ning beside her, Yu Ci and Gu Xingnan sitting behind them.

"Next, please welcome the outstanding graduate representative of the Class of 202X, Ye Zeli, to the stage to speak."

When the outstanding graduate representative's speech segment began, Lin Ning was still burying her head in her phone.

"Wow, Ye Zeli, is that the lofty flower? I heard he went to Nan Feng to study."

"Yes, the same school as Mu Xi senior!"

Mu Youyu had heard that name before; it belonged to someone who had been in the same class as her second older brother.

Ye Zeli was only one year ahead of them; Lin Ning had heard of him earlier but had never seen him, and upon hearing the name, she instinctively lifted her head.

A person walked up onto the stage, wearing a clean white shirt, tall and slender, with a clear, aloof, indifferent demeanor, handsome yet exuding a distant aura that kept people at bay.

Stepping up to the microphone, his whole person seemed to radiate a dazzling light.

Lin Ning stared at him for a few seconds, then poked Mu Youyu's arm, "Holy shit, look quick, look quick, look quick—what a handsome senior!"

Ah, he had taken root in her heart.

Mu Youyu followed her gaze and asked, "Who?"

"That one on stage! His name is also nice to hear, Ye Zeli, Ye Zeli…"

Lin Ning repeated it twice, her eyes sparkling, and finally concluded, "We're really a good match."

Mu Youyu resignedly asked, "Where's the match?"

Lin Ning earnestly said, "His 'Li' character starts with L, and my name also has two Ls— isn't that a match?"

Mu Youyu lucidly replied, "There are plenty of names with L in the whole school."

Jiang Liangjin: "Exactly."

Lin Ning lifted her chin, "That's different; I say we're a match, so we are."

Mu Youyu didn't continue the conversation.

Ye Zeli spoke in a calm tone, occasionally lifting his eyes to scan the audience; whenever his gaze swept over her direction, Lin Ning would instinctively straighten her back.

After he finished speaking and stepped down, Lin Ning slowly leaned back against her chair, covered her face, and whispered, "Youbao, I'm going to pursue him."

Mu Youyu tilted her head, "Are you serious?"

"Serious!" Lin Ning turned her head, her eyes earnest, "Don't you think he looks a lot like my future boyfriend?"

No.

"Honey, that's your eyesight being off."

Mu Youyu pressed her lips, she did not think her eyesight was problematic.

Jiang Liangjin couldn't stand anyone saying that about her, "Your eyesight is the problem."

Lin Ning's profile, "Did you just speak to me?"

"Oh."

Mu Youyu tried to wake her up: "We're still young; we can't date early."

"Just chasing after him, I never said we'd be together."

After the event ended, Lin Ning pulled Mu Youyu and walked several circles around the auditorium, trying to create a chance encounter, but she didn't even see a shadow.

In the end she had to give up, sighing, "Forget it, there's plenty of time."

Mu Youyu opened her mouth, but still said nothing.

Ningning should be no different from her previous three-minute fad hobbies; she'll forget it in a few days.

She didn't expect that this time Lin Ning had truly taken it to heart.

Not long after the start of term, under Lin Ning's soft and hard pleading, Jiang Liangjin was finally forced to give up his seat next to Mu Youyu for a month, and she got her wish to become Mu Youyu's desk mate.

Jiang Liangjin sat behind them at a single desk, while Yu Ci and Gu Xingnan were arranged in the first row, farther away from them.

Mu Youyu had already self-studied all the lesson content, so during class she would occasionally flip through an sketchbook or doodle a few strokes.

Lin Ning didn't understand the lessons, so she simply stopped listening and started pulling Mu Youyu to do something else.

One day during break, Lin Ning suddenly exclaimed, "Youbao, I've figured out the names of the male and female leads for that novel 《When Rain Falls on the Fingertips》!"

《When Rain Falls on the Fingertips》 is a romantic fantasy novel Lin Ning wrote on a whim during the summer vacation; she had completed a full outline, but the main text remained unwritten.

The heroine's name is Yushi; she hadn't decided on a surname, and the hero's name was still undecided.

Mu Youyu had looked at the novel's outline back then and was quite interested, "Go on, tell me."

Lin Ning immediately wrote the name in her notebook, full of pride, "The heroine's surname is Lin, called Lin Yushi— isn't that nice to hear?"

Mu Youyu glanced at the characters, "Surname Lin?"

"Of course, I'm the female lead's mom, so the child will definitely take my surname." Lin Ning said righteously, "Besides, the name Lin Yushi sounds gentle at first listen, it really suits me."

Mu Youyu was caught up in her enthusiasm and, following her lead, asked, "What about the male lead?"

"Call him Ye Yuan."

"Ye Yuan? Which night? Which affinity?"

Lin Ning blinked and said, "The 'ye' from Ye Zeli, the 'yuan' from fate."

Seeing her best friend silent, she said again, "You don't like it? You could also take your surname, but Mu Yuan sounds like 'no fate'."

"... Or just take the surname Ye."

In later classes, whenever Lin Ning couldn't keep up with the lecture, she would bury her head in her notebook to plot her writing, a hundred times more serious than writing essays.

Mu Youyu often glanced sideways and discovered that what she wrote was all plain language.

Lin Ning suddenly pushed over a draft paper with stick figures drawn on it, saying, "Look, this is my drawing of Ye Zeli! Do you think he'd like this cute art style? If posted online, would he wonder who drew it?"

Mu Youyu lowered her head, "... He'd call the police."

Lin Ning instantly lost heart and gave up the dream of becoming an artist.

"Then you draw! Use your tablet!" She pushed the notebook to Mu Youyu, eyes full of anticipation, "I'll write the plot, you handle the art—together we'll be invincible!"

Mu Youyu didn't object, took out the tablet from the drawer, and drew storyboards following her plot progress, while slightly tweaking the naive lines and prose.

The two thus half-seriously, half-casually worked on this, discussing the plot between classes and burying themselves in their work during class.

Jiang Liangjin could only watch Mu Youyu helplessly, unable to join in.

An Qingqing, like Yu Ci and Gu Xingnan, sat in the front row; since no one kept turning around, no one reported anyone.

Those scattered moments of goofing off in class passed bit by bit in the sketches and a few aimless discussions.

After a month, the comic had accumulated about twenty chapters in a scattered way.

When it came time for the monthly exam and free seating, Mu Youyu and Jiang Liangjin sat together again.

Lin Ning had no choice but to sit with her previous desk mate; flipping through her best friend's drafts, she suddenly said, "Youbao, can I publish this?"

Mu Youyu was still supervising Jiang Liangjin as he did his homework, asking, "Where to publish it?"

"Just online, those comic platforms—I'll help you register an account." Lin Ning grew more excited as she spoke, "My sister knows some people in the biz; maybe we could even get a book published!"

"You're overthinking it."

"Come on, with your art skills, it'll definitely blow up."

"Fine, fine, go ahead and publish if you want." Mu Youyu laughed and scooted her chair a bit toward her, asking, "What should the pen name be?"

"I've thought it over." Lin Ning had already considered this, "Yue Shu!"

Mu Youyu read it once, "Yue Shu?"

"Yes, 'Lin xia lou yue guang, shu shu ru can xue'—the Lin character at the start, Yue Shu at the end, isn't that evocative? I think it especially fits this story's style, and besides, there's another Lin character in there, which counts as our hard work to some extent."

Yu Ci, sitting back in front of the two, hissed, "Where'd you find this poem? You're too cultured."

Lin Ning: "It's a must."

Mu Youyu: "As long as you like it, just publish under that name."

Jiang Liangjin's pen paused, the corner of his mouth lifting, "Are you really going to publish it?"

Mu Youyu smacked him, "Don't laugh at me."

Jiang Liangjin collected his laughter, "Youbao's drawings are so lifelike, how could I laugh at you? I'm laughing at the guy who'd drop the male lead."

Mu Youyu: "……"

Lin Ning rolled her eyes, "It's just mocking the characters she draws—this person is really nasty."

That day, Lin Ning actually went to register an account, named it "Yue Shu", and uploaded those drafts at a rate of two chapters per week.

After doing that, she handed her phone to Mu Youyu to see, "All done—now we just wait for it to gain fans on its own."

Mu Youyu didn't take it to heart.

After a few weeks, Lin Ning excitedly raised her phone, "Youbao, look!"

The screen showed the comic account's page; the follower count had already risen to four digits, and many in the comment section were urging updates.

Mu Youyu took the phone and flipped through the comments.

This comic had only released four chapters, and half the comments were urging updates: "【The art style is so comfortable, it's friendly to my eyes!】"

"【I don't get the story, feels like there are lots of foreshadowing, but I inexplicably want to keep reading—when's the next update?】"

"【This artist doesn't seem like a newcomer; the art texture and background are so divine—if you commissioned a piece, it'd probably cost four figures……】"

"【The art style is amazing, inexplicably like that of a certain teacher in the circle!】"

"【These days the homepage keeps popping up this recommendation; if you don't click in, it keeps pushing this novel—hiss, is there some inside scoop? What's your connection to the official?】"

Mu Youyu saw that comment and realized Lin Ning's sister had sent people to promote it; she returned the phone to her, saying, "Wow, someone's actually reading it."

"Of course!" Lin Ning proudly lifted her chin, "Not even checking whose story it is, who drew the art."

Mu Youyu laughed and teased, "Wow, you're going to be famous!"

"Keep it low-key! Want to pre-book a big shot's autograph?"

Yu Ci leaned in, "I want it, I want it!"

"Sure." Lin Ning raised her eyebrows triumphantly, about to sign, but Yu Ci's next line broke the mood: "I don't want yours, I want Youbao's."

Lin Ning was speechless, "Then what did you say to me?"

Yu Ci: "I didn't say anything to you."

Jiang Liangjin grabbed his desk mate's hand, "I want it too!"

Gu Xingnan followed the crowd, "Then I want it too!"

Mu Youyu smiled, wrote "Yue Shu" on the paper, and handed each of the three a copy, saying, "Come on, don't take this to sell for money."

"Got it, got it."

"……"

After "When Rain Falls from the Fingertips" went viral, Lin Ning would every now and then receive some private messages; besides blessings, many people also came seeking Artist Name Yue Shu for commissions.

At first, Mu Youyu replied to a few, negotiated one order—a regular fanart; after finishing, she collected the final payment, and the process went smoothly.

For the second order, the other party's setting was exactly to her taste—ancient‑style fantasy, a girl general, a glance back on a snowy night; each keyword hit her aesthetic points.

Moreover, the client's asking price had been driven up by her; they were among the top‑priced OC commissioners in the circle.

This time the client came for Artist Name Yue Shu's fame, laid out the terms clearly, hoping to pay extra to secure a commission from Yue Shu.

Mu Youyu opened her homepage, and one beautiful image after another appeared before her eyes—all in a style she liked; plus this setting was a "heart‑flutter" concept, so she voluntarily offered to draw it for free.

Throughout the drawing process, that person kept praising her, providing immense emotional value.

Not long after the artwork was posted, that person updated on Weibo: "【Artist Name Yue Shu goddess said my piece is a heart‑flutter concept, she drew it for free! It's so beautiful, what have I done to deserve this?!】"

The attached image was the finished ancient‑style illustration, signed with Artist Name Yue Shu's name at the bottom.

The comment section quickly heated up; several top comments remarked: "? Artist Name Yue Shu? Isn't she not taking commissions? How did she end up drawing this for free?"

"【Where did you download your Love and Painter? I can't find it.】"

"【Quickly delete your Love and Painter 【smile】】"

"【Just post this little thing on Moments; I really aren't the slightest bit envious, jealous, or hurt.】"

"【Waaah, the goddess still has time to take commissions but doesn't update.】"

Lin Ning saw that post and immediately forwarded it to Mu Youyu, adding: "【Did you really draw it for free for her?】"

Mu Youyu: "Isn't this a heart‑flutter concept?"

Lin Ning: "【Good】 You're truly a beautiful, kind‑hearted rich lady!"

Mu Youyu sent an emoji pack over and didn't continue the topic.

Afterwards, she found that clients in the art circle were especially sincere and cute, so she took on another order.

After agreeing, Mu Youyu finished the line art in two hours and sent it to the other party for confirmation.

The other party replied quickly: "【It looks great!! Can't wait for the finished picture】"

She then spent half a day coloring and sent the finished product over.

The other side replied promptly: "【The drawing is awesome! I love it! Just, could the background color be tweaked a bit?】"

Mu Youyu thought it wasn't a big issue, made the change, and sent it again.

The client said they liked it very much and would transfer the final payment that evening.

Mu Youyu waited until the next day, but the other side still hadn't responded; she didn't press further, since she wasn't planning to make money from this anyway.

Still, Lin Ning worried she might be scammed, sent her a message, and a red exclamation mark warned that she had been blocked.